The One with Everlark
by ShiningCity
Summary: Characters from the Hungers Games as imagined in the Friends universe.


_In honor of the 25th anniversary of "Friends,_"_ I have combined it with my love/obsession for Everlark and written this little thing. Hope you enjoy :)_

* * *

The One with Everlark

Katniss plopped down heavily on the old orange sofa, inhaling the familiar smells of the coffee shop: the espresso brewing into over-sized mugs, fresh-baked blueberry muffins and that indescribable scent of newspapers. A waitress brought over the black coffee Katniss had ordered and she eagerly took a sip of the scalding liquid, the strong flavor flooding her mouth and washing away the bad taste of the day.

She had just been fired for the third time in the past six months, this restaurant using the same excuse as the previous two: that the rest of the staff found her too "difficult" to work with. She rolled her eyes inwardly. If the rest of the staff wasn't so incompetent in their cooking and serving, then maybe she wouldn't feel the need to constantly correct them.

"What are you doing here so early?" a familiar voice suddenly said behind her. She turned to see Gale leaning over the couch, wearing his suit as he always did for his lectures at NYU.

"Oh, I got fired again," she replied exasperatedly.

"Again?" he asked, his brow furrowing.

She appreciated her cousin's concern, but had little patience for it at the moment and rolled her eyes.

"Yep. For the same reason as before. I'm too _bossy_ and _intimidating_." She scoffed as if it were the most unbelievable thing in the world, but she saw the reprimanding look in Gale's eyes.

Just then Peeta and Finnick entered Central Perk, each wearing a Knicks jersey. She vaguely recalled they were going to a game tonight.

"Hey, guys," Finnick greeted cheerfully.

Katniss, what are you doing here?" Peeta asked in an unassuming tone, though the question made her feel defensive anyway. "I thought you had a shift at the restaurant."

"She got fired," Gale interjected with little sympathy.

"Again?" Finnick said, giving her a reproachful look.

"Hey! It's not my fault that these restaurants keep hiring useless workers!" she argued irritably.

"Not everyone has your standards, Katniss," Gale replied, taking a sip of his own coffee and sitting down in one of the nearby chairs though the rest of the sofa was unoccupied.

Peeta suddenly sat down beside her and she looked at him appreciatively. At least not _everyone_ was intimidated by her dominant personality.

"Hey, lay off her, guys," he said, putting his hands up in a conciliatory manner. "She's good at what she does. And in her defense, Iridium has a reputation for poor service."

"Thank you!" Katniss said triumphantly, peering at Gale as he so cowardly took another long sip of his coffee.

Clearly, not finding any purpose in continuing this conversation, Finnick sat down on the other side of her and changed the subject. "How did your lecture go, Gale?"

"Great!" Gale replied, leaning forward to set his empty cup on the coffee table. "I really got to dive into biodiversity today."

Gale continued, giving what he thought would be a brief version of the same lecture he gave his students, but it was already turning into something that included vocabulary completely unfamiliar to the three on the sofa.

"Sorry I asked," Finnick muttered into his coffee mug. Katniss and Peeta hid their smirks in their own coffee mugs as they pretended to listen.

Suddenly, Madge and Johanna walked in, the bell on the door jingling and announcing their arrival.

"Thank God," Katniss whispered after peering over the back of the sofa at them.

"Hey!" They all greeted each other as Madge and Johanna dropped several shopping bags near Gale's seat.

"Katniss, what are you-" Madge began, but Gale urgently waved his hand under his chin to cut her off. Unfortunately, he wasn't quick enough to avoid detection by Katniss and she threw her unused spoon at him.

Madge, clearly getting the picture, ceased the thread of that conversation.

"So, what have you two been up to?" Peeta asked, successfully breaking the tension. Katniss appreciated his ability to do that so easily.

"Well," Johanna began, "since Madge has decided to stop living off of her dad's credit card, we decided she should start looking for her own job."

"You've clearly been very successful at breaking her spending habits," Gale remarked sarcastically with a smirk, gesturing toward the numerous shopping bags at his feet.

"Very funny," Johanna retorted. "But everyone knows that first impressions matter, so we had to go shopping first to get her the perfect outfit for an interview."

Katniss wondered if Johanna even knew that she had offered to let Madge borrow some of her clothes for interviews. She had a feeling Madge had omitted that detail so that she could continue indulging her filthy habits.

Suddenly, Finnick's pager beeped and he pulled it from his belt loop to read the numbers.

"It's my agent!" he said excitedly. "Maybe she got me the role in that soap-opera I told you guys about!"

"Well, go call her!" Peeta urged, reaching behind Katniss's small shoulders to nudge Finnick's.

Finnick beamed as he swiftly rose from the couch to find the phone and receive whatever news awaited him. Johanna immediately took his empty seat on the couch while Madge sat down on the arm of Gale's chair. Katniss could see the blush in Gale's face at Madge's close proximity. He had never been good at flirting with girls, and Madge was no exception, though he'd had a crush on her since they were in high school.

"Do you really think he'll get the part this time?" Johanna asked lowly so that Finnick couldn't hear her, though he was already preoccupied on Central Perk's phone behind the counter.

Peeta shrugged and sighed. "Who knows? He's been rehearsing his lines in the apartment for weeks. I think _I've_ even got them memorized by now."

"Can you imagine him playing a doctor, though?" Katniss couldn't help the slight chuckle in her voice. "He probably doesn't even know what the word 'anatomy' means."

"This coming from the woman who's gotten fired three times for not being able to play nice with other people," Gale retorted good-naturedly.

"Give me my spoon back so I can throw it at you again," Katniss deadpanned. Peeta chuckled beside her, the vibrations somehow echoing through the couch and making her heart race.

"Shh, here he comes," Madge whispered urgently.

"Well?" Peeta asked warily, seeing the disappointed look on Finnick's face.

Unable to pretend any longer, his face suddenly broke into a giant grin. "I got the part!" he exclaimed.

Everyone cheered and congratulated him, exchanging subtle looks of surprise, though their enthusiasm was genuine.

"That's great, Finnick!" Peeta said, rising from the sofa to clap him on the back. "When do you start?"

"I have to go down to the studio tonight, actually," Finnick replied. "They want to get me fitted for some of the costumes."

"I guess you won't be going to the Knicks game with me then?" Peeta asked, seeming a bit disappointed but masking it well to avoid dampening Finnick's exciting news.

"Oh, shoot, man. I didn't even think about that."

Peeta waved him off. "Don't worry about it. This is your big break! Maybe Gale will ditch his night class and go with me?" He looked over at Gale, though they all knew Gale would never miss a lecture.

"Sorry, man," he replied with a sheepish look. "Not happening." He paused for a moment to look at his watch. "Speaking of which, I should head back to campus now."

They all murmured in agreement, pulling out dollar bills to leave on the coffee table before they walked out of the shop.

_E◦V◦E◦R◦L◦A◦R◦K_

"Why don't you come to the Knicks game with me?" Peeta asked Katniss as they walked into her and Madge's apartment.

Katniss hesitated, a bit caught off guard. Not just because the guys never asked any of the girls to go to sporting events with them, but also because of the slight flip her stomach did.

"What, it's not like you're working tonight," he said teasingly, misunderstanding her hesitation.

She scowled at him playfully.

"Alright," she agreed. "As long as you buy me a beer."

"Hey, you're getting a free ticket out of this. Maybe _you_ should be the one buying the beer!" He laughed and she suddenly noticed how the blue of his Knicks jersey matched his eyes.

"I don't even have a jersey," she remarked after a moment, hoping that would give a good excuse for her scrutiny of his own attire.

"Oh, I've got one you could borrow. It will be a little too big on you, but women always look good in over-sized jerseys." He shrugged and gave her his winning smile. She felt her face flush slightly and couldn't help but wonder if his comment had been neutral or not.

She laughed nervously but consented to wearing his jersey.

"What time is the game?" she asked, pretending to busy herself with straightening the fruit bowl on the kitchen table.

"7:00. I'll come back in an hour to get you," he replied before opening the door of her apartment to leave.

"Great. See you later."

He waved and smiled again before closing the door behind him. She couldn't tell if he was just pretending to be nonchalant or if this really wasn't a big deal to him like it was to her. She felt her heart quicken when she realized she was hoping it was the former.

_E◦V◦E◦R◦L◦A◦R◦K_

"I can't believe Peeta asked you to go to the game with him!" Madge said loudly so that Katniss could hear her in the bedroom as she got ready. "The guys never ask us to go with them."

"Don't even act like you would want to go, Madge," Johanna stated and Katniss could imagine the epic eye-roll she was giving. "You don't even know what sport the Knicks play."

"Yes, I do!" Madge argued.

Katniss rolled her own eyes at their petty argument and tuned out the persistent bickering. These little spats were so common, sometimes she wondered how the three of them were such good friends.

When she emerged from her bedroom wearing high-waisted jeans and a white t-shirt to put the jersey over, she found them facing off on the couch.

"Madge, if you really want to go to a game some time, why don't you just ask?" Katniss said, interrupting them.

"Maybe I will!" Madge replied indignantly, sitting back on the couch and crossing her arms. Johanna rolled her eyes for presumably the hundredth time before relenting on the argument.

"Well, let's at least see what Katniss thinks about it before we all decide we want to start being invited," Johanna suggested. "Maybe watching tall, muscular men putting a ball through a hoop isn't even worth the effort."

Madge and Katniss couldn't help but chuckle at Johanna's assessment, though the real reason for Katniss wanting to go lingered in the back of her mind. She felt a little guilty for not confiding in Madge and Johanna about her feelings toward Peeta. Although, she wasn't even sure if she was ready to address them as _feelings_ just yet.

This was all so new for her. Sure, she had dated guys over the years - it was almost impossible not to living in a crowded city such as New York. But most of them had turned out to be shallow attempts at finding companionship or one-night-stands to ease the building sexual frustration. If she dated Peeta, it would be different. They knew each other, and knew each other well. They were friends and had a history. If they explored these feelings and it didn't end well, it could very well tear their friendship apart. At the moment, maintaining the close, family-like structure of their friend group seemed more important than some fleeting feelings she was experiencing. She would keep this night casual. That should be easy - she and Peeta were good friends after all.

As if Peeta had heard his name floating around in her mind, he suddenly opened the door, holding the promised jersey in his hands.

"Ready to go?" he asked, their fingers brushing as he handed the jersey to her.

"Sure, just let me put this on," she replied, pulling it over her head and being mindful not to muss her braid.

She held out her arms. "How do I look?"

"Fantastic!" Peeta replied emphatically. "It looks better on you than it does me!"

She looked down at the jersey that practically hung to her knees and chuckled. Peeta must have realized how silly his statement sounded and laughed too.

"Let's just go," she said, shaking her head.

"Have fun!" Madge yelled as she and Peeta headed for the door.

"Remember," Johanna called. "You're on a mission." Katniss laughed out loud as Johanna flexed her arms and pretended to shoot a basketball.

"What was that all about?" Peeta asked as she closed the door behind them.

"Nothing. Just Johanna being...well, Johanna."

He laughed in understanding. "I know exactly what you mean."

_E◦V◦E◦R◦L◦A◦R◦K_

The crowd roared as the Knicks made another three-point shot. Katniss could feel the vibrations rumbling under her feet and joined in the infectious cheering. She had even forgotten her assigned "mission" from Johanna.

Upon the start of the game, Katniss quickly understood why the guys attended these sporting events and, though it was for entirely different reasons than Johanna and Madge had presumed, she was immensely enjoying herself. The energy in the air was tangible and she felt that the impending victory was as much hers as the team's.

Throughout the game, as the Knicks continued to hit shot after shot, Katniss and Peeta had progressed from high-fives to jumpy hugs. It didn't seem out-of-place in the euphoric atmosphere of Madison Square Garden, but Katniss couldn't deny the thrill she felt every time Peeta's large hands embraced her, or when his broad, solid chest came into contact with her own.

Perhaps it was the beer that was impeding her ability to push out these feelings, she thought as she finished off her third one of the night.

Peeta had kept up with her and seemed to be buzzing slightly as well. He had bought the first round in agreement with her initial request, but she had insisted on buying the next two, forgetting for the moment that she had no job and would soon be out of money.

To Katniss's disappointment, the game finally ended, but with a solid victory for the Knicks. She assumed the high from the game would dissipate after leaving the stadium, but the heady combination of a win, three beers and being with Peeta sustained the feeling even on the bus ride back to their apartment building in the Village.

"So what did you think?" Peeta asked, swaying slightly as he held onto the metal bars above him on the bus. For being slightly intoxicated, he was still remarkably well-spoken.

"It was fantastic!" Katniss replied, perhaps a bit too eagerly. "I had such a great time! Thanks for asking me to go!"

Peeta laughed. "Of course! I'm glad you agreed to come."

"Me too."

She paused for a moment, trying to weigh the consequences of her next words carefully, but the pleasant buzz of alcohol made her quickly dismiss any logical thought.

"Can we go again some time?" she asked.

Peeta looked at her, his blue eyes wide in slight surprise and delight. "Absolutely. Maybe I'll start bringing you along instead of Finnick." He winked and Katniss felt heat flood her face as her heart thudded in her chest. But she really just couldn't tell what he intended by these comments. Was he purposely being flirtatious? Or was he just being her good friend, Peeta?

After they exited the bus and entered the apartment building, they both began stumbling up the stairs, breaking into fits of laughter over their clumsiness. Once they reached the hallway between their apartments, Katniss laughed loudly and said, "Maybe I better sober up at your place first so I don't wake up Madge."

Peeta chuckled as he fumbled with his keys to open his apartment door. "Good idea. Finnick said he would be at the studio pretty late so we won't be bothering anyone here."

He finally got the apartment open and they stumbled inside, Katniss immediately heading for the couch and sprawling out on it. Usually, she took note of the chaos of Peeta and Finnick's apartment. The unorganized kitchen and lopsided artwork, but tonight, she didn't really care.

When the smell of coffee reached her nostrils, she realized Peeta had stayed behind in the kitchen to make some. She sat up to look over at him while he poured some into a coffee mug and brought it over to her. She didn't even stop to ponder over the cleanliness of the cup before taking a long sip.

She immediately felt a bit more sober. "Wow," she remarked. "You make really good coffee."

"One of my many hidden talents," he replied with a waggle of his dark brows before dropping into his recliner with his own cup.

They sat in companionable silence for a little while, drinking the hot liquid before it cooled. Though it was effective in sobering her up, the warmth she felt in her belly suddenly made her feel tired. She yawned loudly.

Peeta chuckled, rising from the recliner to fetch her coffee mug before taking it along with his own to the kitchen. After he rinsed them out, he asked, "Feel sober enough to go back to your place now?"

When she didn't respond, Peeta peered over at her on the couch to find she had fallen asleep in those few moments it took for him to clean their cups. He couldn't help but smile as he took in her appearance. She still wore his Knicks jersey, but it was slightly askew on her small frame. Some tendrils of her hair had loosened from her braid and curled about her face.

Feeling that it was wrong for her to sleep on the couch while he slept in a bed, he easily scooped her up from the couch and brought her into his room where he took care to lay her down on the bed gently so as to not wake her. After tucking in the blankets around her, he turned to go back out to the living room where he would sleep on the couch, when suddenly her hand darted out and caught his wrist.

He turned in surprise.

"Stay with me?" she asked sleepily, her silver eyes catching the light of the moon, threatening to hypnotize him.

He hesitated. Perhaps she was still slightly inebriated. "Are you sure?" he asked. "I was just going to sleep on the couch."

"Don't be ridiculous," she replied, scooting over to make room for him on the bed. "It's _your_ bed."

He looked into her eyes for another moment but couldn't find any hint of a drunken fog. Without another word, he crawled into bed next to her, their noses inches apart.

He was just about to wish her goodnight when she suddenly kissed him. She could no longer blame her actions on the alcohol. She just couldn't seem to remember why she _shouldn't_ kiss him.

She could sense his surprise based on his failure to respond to her mouth, but after she pulled away, he searched her face for a mere, brief moment before attacking her lips with his own. Things were escalating quickly and the heat mounting between them was nearly unbearable.

Peeta must have felt it too and suddenly pulled away from her.

"Wait, Katniss, is this weird?" he asked, sitting up a bit.

"What do you mean?" she replied, following suit.

"I mean...we're friends. Good friends. I've known you since Gale and I roomed together freshman year of college. We're practically family -"

"Don't you dare say that I'm like a sister to you," she warned, hoping her voice sounded more threatening than she felt.

"No, no, no," Peeta stated quickly before he let out a breathy laugh. "That is not what I meant. Trust me."

She quirked her eyebrow at him.

"I just meant...I don't want this to ruin our friendship…"

She sighed. "I know what you mean."

She could see his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed. "How about this: we just...see where this leads…"

She turned to fully face him, her eyebrows raised in surprise at his bluntness.

"Hear me out," he said in response to her look. "We see where it leads, and if it doesn't end well, we will never speak of it again. Not to the others or to each other. We'll just pretend like it never happened."

Katniss thought about it for a moment. "It's not like a one-night-stand, though," she stated quietly. "It's not like we can just never see each other again. We might not ever speak of it, but we'll always _know_."

Peeta nodded. "Yeah, but I don't intend on losing a great friendship just over bad sex."

Katniss's mouth fell open. "Are you _assuming_ the sex will be bad?" she asked incredulously.

"That depends on how much control you're willing to give me," he replied with an almost-seductive look on his face.

Katniss felt her face flame. He knew exactly which buttons to push. That should be another indicator that this wasn't a good idea. They knew each other too well: knew each other's dirty secrets, past sexual partners, strengths and weaknesses. But perhaps those were things that could make for a solid relationship as well…

Before Katniss could contemplate any further, she rose from the bed. His eyes followed her as she walked over to his side of the bed so he could get a full view as she stripped off her jeans, followed by his jersey and her white t-shirt. As she stood before him in only her underclothes, not feeling as vulnerable as she expected, she practically whispered, "Let's see how well you take being bossed around first."

_E◦V◦E◦R◦L◦A◦R◦K_

"Okay," Peeta said, panting as he lay on his back with her head on his chest. "The sex was _definitely_ not bad."

"Not bad?" she questioned, putting her chin on his chest to look at him.

He chuckled and she felt it rumble through his chest.

"Okay, it was great," he relented. "In fact...I think it might have been the best sex I've ever had."

"I was thinking the same thing," she admitted, a bit shyly.

Seeing each other completely naked had been a bit awkward at first, but after breaking down the mental barriers they'd created to only view each other as friends, they had an experience that left each of them feeling more sated and connected than they ever had.

"You've been paying attention haven't you?" Katniss asked, quirking an eyebrow at him.

"What do you mean?" he said adjusting himself so he could see her face a little better.

"All the times I've talked about sex with Madge and Johanna and I thought you weren't listening, you actually were."

He shrugged, but couldn't help the proud smirk that crept onto his face. "I thought it might be pertinent to store away the information of what you liked and, definitely, of what you _didn't_ like."

"Oh, because you knew this would happen?" Katniss said, amused, though she had to admit she had been listening to similar bits of information he had shared over the years as well.

"I guess I always hoped it would some day," Peeta replied seriously, surprising her. She sat up and turned to look at him, studying his face.

"Me too," she finally responded.

"So, now what?" he asked as she laid her head back down on his chest.

"I don't know…" she said, feeling the tendrils of sleep beckoning her. "Let's decide tomorrow."

_E◦V◦E◦R◦L◦A◦R◦K_

Gale dragged himself out of bed after hearing the phone ring for the fourth time that morning.

"Hello?" he asked, his voice gravelly from sleep.

"What the hell, Gale?" Johanna's sharp voice demanded, but she quickly moved on to the purpose of her phone call. "Have you seen Katniss? Madge says she never came home last night."

Gale felt a little more awake at this news but didn't see much cause for alarm just yet. Katniss was independent. Since they were children he had learned that. She did _what_ she wanted _when_ she wanted.

"No, I haven't seen her," he replied. "Didn't she go to the Knicks game with Peeta last night? Ask him where she is."

"Madge already tried going over there. I don't think he's home, the door to the apartment was locked and he didn't answer."

"Have you talked to Finnick yet?" Gale asked, taking the phone with him to his bedroom as he attempted to get dressed.

"I don't think he's been home yet, either...Oh wait, here he is now! I'll call you back." And with that, Johanna hung up the phone.

"Finnick!" Madge cried as he strolled in through her apartment door, probably searching for food. "Where have you been?"

Finnick looked a little caught off-guard. "I told you I would be at the studio late," he said defensively.

"Ugh, it doesn't matter," Johanna interjected. "Have you seen Katniss? She didn't come home last night. We've tried calling you, Peeta and Gale and Gale just answered. He hasn't seen her."

"Is Peeta not at our apartment?" Finnick asked, brows furrowing in slight concern.

"I don't think so," Madge replied. "I tried going over there but the door was locked and no one answered."

"Alright, I'll go check," Finnick replied, pulling his keys out of his jacket pocket as he walked back across the hall.

"We'll go check Central Perk," Madge said as she and Johanna brushed past him in the hallway.

Once Finnick got the door to the apartment open, the first thing he noticed was that the door to Peeta's room was closed. That was odd, he only closed it when he was going to sleep. Maybe he was still asleep.

"Peeta?" Finnick called out.

Inside Peeta's bedroom, Peeta and Katniss jumped awake at the sound of Finnick's voice.

"Hide!" Peeta urged, knowing that neither of them were ready to face the scrutiny of their friends just yet.

Katniss hid discreetly under the covers as Peeta adjusted them so that it didn't _look_ like anyone was hiding beneath them.

"Peeta!" Finnick called again as he knocked on the door and then opened it without waiting for a response.

"Hey!" Peeta greeted, a little too eagerly in Katniss's opinion.

"Peet? What are you still doing in bed? You never sleep this late," Finnick said, sounding a bit confused.

"Oh, you know, being at the game late last night just really took it out of me."

Katniss practically hit him. His attempts at lying were terrible. Finnick didn't seem convinced either.

"Alright, well, have you seen Katniss? The girls said she didn't come home last night."

"Oh, she made it home last night. I saw her go into her apartment myself."

"Are you sure? The girls seem pretty worked up about it. They're looking for her everywhere."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm sure. Maybe she was just so quiet they didn't hear her." Again, Katniss cringed at Peeta's unconvincing lying. "She might be out job-searching or something now."

"Okay, I'll let them know. If you see her though, tell her to come home. And tell her to come quick."

Katniss could hear the inappropriate chuckle in Peeta's throat before he choked it back and she rolled her eyes. Finnick just needed to leave.

"I will. Definitely." Another choked chuckle and she pinched his side. He jerked violently away from her.

Finnick must have given him a weird look because he said, "Cramp. Foot cramp."

Finally, Katniss heard the door click shut and she threw the covers back, breathing in the fresh air before she punched Peeta in the shoulder.

"You stink at lying!" she growled.

"Oh, lighten up. He didn't suspect anything," Peeta said with a dismissive wave of his hand.

"Well, I better get back to the apartment while they're all out looking for me. I don't want to have to explain why I'm sneaking out of your apartment at 9:00 in the morning," Katniss stated as she rose from the bed to retrieve her discarded clothes from the floor. She tried to pretend like she didn't know Peeta was watching her nude form, but the blush in her cheeks gave her away.

When she found his jersey that she had worn the night before, she tossed it at his face. "Here's your jersey back."

"You keep it," he replied, pulling it from his head and tossing it back to her. "You'll need it for the many more Knicks games I'm taking you to."

"Oh, really? Will these Knicks games end with nights similar to last night?" she asked with a suggestive look.

"If you'd like them to," he replied smoothly, though his own face had reddened. "But, you know, nights _without_ Knicks games can end that way too."

She chuckled but felt a jolt of excitement in her belly. "We'll just have to be careful."

"Of course."

She was finally dressed and was about to sneak out the door when she realized this was how most of her one-night-stands had ended. She didn't want this to feel like one of those mornings. This was different. She suddenly turned away from the door to Peeta's bedroom and strode back over to him on the bed.

He gave her a questioning look before she leaned down and gave him a deep, lingering kiss. He smiled broadly at her as she pulled away and gave him one last sheepish look before sneaking out of his bedroom, through his apartment, across the hall and into her own apartment.

As she opened the door, she realized a couple of things. One was that she had a wide, terribly guilty smile plastered on her face. The other, was that she had taken too long to return. Gale, Finnick, Madge and Johanna were all there, standing in her kitchen. She felt their eyes on her as they took in her appearance.

"Where were you?" Johanna demanded, approaching her angrily. Gale and Madge just looked relieved, but Finnick had a weird expression on his face.

Knowing there was no denying that she had been gone all night given that she was wearing the same clothes she'd worn to the game, she made an attempt to sound nonchalant as she said, "I met a guy."

Johanna and Madge's faces took on a look of surprise and curiosity, while Gale, on the other hand, looked like he wanted to hear no part of the anticipated conversation.

"What? Who?" Madge asked, sitting down at the kitchen table. "Tell us about him!"

"Yeah, tell us," Finnick chimed in, surprising all of them.

"Umm," Katniss began, fumbling for words. "Well, I met him at the Knicks game. He was sitting by me."

"And you stayed the night with him?" Johanna asked, crossing her arms.

"Yes," Katniss replied, trying to appear like she had juicy details to share.

"Really?" Finnick asked, again surprising them. "Peeta said he watched you walk into your apartment last night."

Katniss mentally kicked herself for forgetting what Peeta had told Finnick just a few minutes ago. "Oh, well he was probably just covering for me," Katniss stated, thinking she had recovered nicely.

Finnick was still giving her a skeptical look when Peeta suddenly walked in. She hoped he had stepped up his lying game since she had been hiding naked in his bed just a little bit ago.

"Hey!" Peeta greeted Katniss. "There you are! Everyone was looking for you!"

"Yeah," Katniss chuckled nervously. "I was just telling them how you covered for me last night."

Peeta gave her a brief, but alarmed look as he struggled to catch onto her meaning.

"You know, you told Finnick that I came home but really I met someone at the game," Katniss widened her eyes, hoping that they were conveying her desperation for him to follow along.

"Oh, right, right. Yeah, no problem." She breathed a quiet sigh of relief as he paused. "How was he, by the way?" he asked with a suggestive look.

Katniss felt her face flush for the hundredth time since last night. She glared at Peeta angrily. She couldn't believe he was using this opportunity to stroke his ego. Well, two could play this game.

Everyone looked at her expectantly. Glad that she had all of their attention she shrugged and replied succinctly, "Meh."

She glanced at Peeta, seeing his face fall before blushing. She smirked.

"Ouch," Johanna chimed in.

"Yeah, he seemed like the kind of guy that thinks he's really great in bed, but isn't," she glanced at Peeta again. He narrowed his eyes at her.

"Ugh, those guys are the worst!" Madge remarked. Katniss didn't miss the quick, horrified glance Gale gave to her.

"Well, maybe you were just being too demanding," Peeta suddenly said, surprising all of them. Katniss's mouth dropped open and she could see the playful look in Peeta's eyes.

"Oh, damn!" Johanna exclaimed with a laugh. "Low blow, Peeta!"

"Well, he clearly needed _someone_ telling him what to do," Katniss pushed on, feeling flustered.

"Have you ever considered just relaxing and letting someone else do all the work for once?" Peeta retorted. She knew he was still just teasing her, but she felt a little defensive. Somewhere in her mind, she knew Peeta liked it when she got all riled up.

To distract herself, she held out his Knicks jersey she'd laid across her arm, pretending to fold it.

Finnick suddenly interjected. "Katniss, have you been cleaning our apartment again?"

Everyone looked at him questioningly.

"What? No," Katniss replied, confused over why in the world this was so important right now.

"Yeah, right. I just saw that jersey lying on the floor of Peet's bedroom."


End file.
